Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39920552›Full record

ArticleEJNMMI reports2025

Prospective evaluation of the diagnostic accuracy of FDG-PET/CT for the detection of sternal wound infection post-sternotomy.

Angela Cai, Mehrshad Bakhshi, Yoan Lamarche, Francois Harel, Matthieu Pelletier-Galarneau

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Article in EJNMMI reports, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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2 · The registry

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Angela Cai *Department of Medical Imaging, Montreal Heart Institute, Montreal, QC, H1T 1C8, Canada.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0003-2140-7950
Mehrshad Bakhshi *Department of Medical Imaging, Montreal Heart Institute, Montreal, QC, H1T 1C8, Canada.
Yoan LamarcheDepartment of Surgery, Montreal Heart Institute, Montreal, QC, Canada.
Francois HarelDepartment of Medical Imaging, Montreal Heart Institute, Montreal, QC, H1T 1C8, Canada.
Matthieu Pelletier-GalarneauDepartment of Medical Imaging, Montreal Heart Institute, Montreal, QC, H1T 1C8, Canada. Matthieu.pelletier-galarneau@icm-mhi.org.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeSternal wound infections (SWI) are complications of sternotomy and can be divided into deep SWI (DSWI) and superficial SWI (SSWI). In recent years, the use of 18F-Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG)-positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) in diagnosing infections and inflammation has expanded significantly, with a growing number of clinical indications. This study assesses FDG-PET/CT diagnostic role in DSWI detection, the evolution of FDG uptake intensity in patients without DSWI and the potential biomarkers for DSWIs prediction.

methodsWe conducted a single center prospective study of consecutive patients referred for suspected SWI post-median sternotomy. Gold standard diagnosis was established by chart review of clinical follow-up, surgical findings, and cultures. To characterize the time between sternotomy and imaging, participants were subsequently subdivided into recent (< 3 months) or remote surgery (≥ 3 months) groups.

results44 FDG-PET/CT scans, 12 (27%) of which had DSWI according to the gold standard, were collected and analyzed. 20 studies were assigned to the recent group, and 24 studies to the remote surgery group. Sensitivity and specificity of FDG-PET/CT for detection of DSWI were 67% and 66%, respectively and an accuracy of 66% was obtained. Positive and negative predictive values were 42% and 84%, respectively. The NPV was higher in the remote surgery group (100%) compared to the recent surgery group (73%). SUV

conclusionFDG-PET/CT has modest sensitivity and specificity for the detection of DSWI post-sternotomy. FDG-PET/CT results must take into account time since surgery; when PET/CT is performed more than 3 months following surgery, a negative scan can exclude DSWI with a high level of certainty.

Indexed as

Deep sternal wound infectionFDG-PET/CTInfection imagingSternal wound infectionSternotomy

Identifiers

PMID39920552
PMCPMC11806163

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